Cider Braised Meatballs Over Celery Root and Potato Puree

~A Fall Favorite in My Home~

Friends of ours own a barn in the beautiful country setting of New York's Hudson Valley. Benevolent friends of ours, that allowed us to hold our wedding reception in this beautiful restored 1800's barn.

They also hold farm to table dinner parties there with a menu chosen that day depending on what's fresh for the picking, local wines a plenty, and demonstrations from the chef on preparing the dishes at home. My favorite dining experiences take place in this barn, sometimes under heat lamps when it gets too chilly. As did this recipe, invented by Chef Sean Hubbel. Savory meatballs drizzled in a slightly sweet reduced braising cider atop a velvety pile of puree perfection. I will be making this several times this fall.

Celery Root Puree and Potato Puree

(Recipe courtesy of Martha Stewart)

-2 large celery root (celeriac) washed, peeled, and cut into cubes

-4 large russet potatoes washed, peeled, and cut into cubes

-1/2 stick or 4TBSP butter

-1 cup of milk (or more for a thinner consistency if needed)

1. STEP 1

   Set a steamer basket in a large pot. Fill with enough water to come just below basket; bring to a boil. Add celery root and potatoes; reduce to a simmer, cover, and cook until tender, 15 to 20 minutes.

2. STEP 2

   Working in batches, transfer celery root, potatoes, half-and-half, and butter to a food processor; puree until smooth. Season with salt.

Meatballs

(Recipe from my Nanny Jane)

1 1/2 lb ground beef

1 1/2 lb ground pork

about a half a loaf of stale italian bread soaked in water 

3-4 eggs

1/2 cup grated parmesan cheese

2 TBSP fresh or dried parsley

1 tsp salt

1/2 tsp pepper

3-4 cloves garlic minced

Squeeze excess water from bread in small clumps and add to a large mixing bowl.

Add all of the remaining ingredients and mix with your hands, then roll into golf ball sized meatballs. Set on a nonstick sprayed or olive oiled (depends on what I have on hand or if I'm in a rush) cookie sheet. Bake at 400 degrees for about 15 minutes until set, but not cooked through.

Using a dutch oven or small stockpot, heat cider then add meatballs. Braise until cooked through and liquid has evaporated some. 

This is enough to feed my family of 4 with some deliciousness left over.

Let me know if you try it!

Let's Start at the Very Beginning...A Very Good Place to Start

Nick's grandfather, Pop-Pop, gave us his old organ when we moved into the new house a year ago and it has provided hours and hours of entertainment for us and anyone who visits. It also came with a music book featuring Rogers' and Hammerstein's best including our personal favorite, The Sound of Music.
Julie Andrews is an idol to little girls...and apparently to big boys too (Dad loves her, too).
Today, while working in the kitchen, I heard MaryJane singing, "Edelweiss." I dropped what I was doing and grabbed my camera. 

Fingers and Toes

MaryJanes was delighted to present her Grandpa with fingers and toes as an appetizer at dinner last week. And she made toe jam to dip it in!

Spooky Things

 We used our regular mashed potato and mashed sweet potato recipe then piped them through a pastry bag fitted with a cake decorating tip. We shaped them into ghosts and pumpkins, respectively of course, then used a paint brush with black food dye to decorate.
A small festive treat.

Living off the Land

Our plan for the summer was to sustain ourselves on just the land for our fresh produce. We planted blueberries,  raspberries, and strawberries and were pleasantly surprised to find mulberries and wild blackberries already growing. Our blueberries didn't do as well as we expected. There is a large Japanese beetle population in our neighborhood and despite our efforts (beetle bags and homemade organic insecticide) they all but completely devoured the plants. The good news is that the blueberries are a perennial and will be back next year. I think I've also found an organic solution to these pests. There is a bacteria called milky spore, that when applied to the ground in August infects the beetle larvae as soon as they hatch disrupting the life cycle. It's completely harmless to all other plants, animals, and people and I believe it stays around for a couple of years.

Our raspberries did survive, perhaps because the produce a bit later and are thriving. We wake up each morning, walk Nana (our puppy), then head straight to the raspberry patch to pick our breakfast. If I had my drothers I'd have enough to make jam for jarring, but my little one can't get enough. They don't even make it in the house. No complaints though, she prefers them without any sugar added. We always have next year to plant more.

Mary, How Does Your Garden Grow...

Every morning, and several times a day, I check my garden to see what's ready for harvesting. This is our first official garden since we now have the space in our new home. I loved being in my grandfather's garden as a child. He grew tomatoes, green beans, wax beans, asparagus, and I think some squash...It's been a long time. He also had a few apple trees that I played hide-and-seek underneath and snacked while hiding. I attribute my love of fruit and vegetables to the time spent at my grandparents' house. I knew whenever I was there, there was always something fresh to picked and transformed into the family meals. I remember being hungry late one night (after the Merv Griffin show) and asking my grandmother for something to eat, expecting some cheese and crackers or some other convenient snack. Instead she went to the stove and prepared warm homemade applesauce from the apples in the backyard she had picked earlier that day. I had to be no more than 4, definitely before grade school, but I remember how special it was and that memory sticks with me today. I think it's important to teach our children the process from seed, to fruit, to table and the self reliance of being able to grow it yourself.

My scaredy cat, Mabel, carefully watches me garden and makes sure the plants don't get more attention than her.

One side will make you grow taller...

All the fancy toys money can buy don't add up to the simple pleasures that can be had in you own backyard. Our neighbors, Haley & Erica picked some wild mushrooms with their Grandma and just had to come over and share them.

They loved the texture of the different caps and their long stems.

They played for ages and then chased each other around the lawn barefoot.

Preparing the Land for Our New Garden

A rewarding lunch menu for all our hard work...
Fresh Squeezed Strawberry Lemonade

Ravioli and sweet potatoes on top of mixed greens with organic chives from a friend's local farm drizzled with extra virgin olive oil
And homemade pizza made on the grill topped with tomato sauce, red peppers, leftover roasted chicken and fresh basil from our herb garden.